Ahmedabad serial blasts: High Court upholds death sentence for 38, life term for 11

The Gujarat High Court upheld the special court's 2022 verdict sentencing 38 convicts to death and 11 others to life imprisonment in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts case. The coordinated attacks killed 56 people and injured over 200 across multiple locations in the city.

In Short

• 38 convicts sentenced to death, 11 given life imprisonment
• Blasts occurred at 21 locations, killing 56 and injuring 200'
• Verdict confirms rarest of rare categorisation by special court

The Gujarat High Court on Tuesday upheld the special court's 2022 verdict sentencing 38 convicts to death and 11 others to life imprisonment in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts case, rejecting all appeals filed against the convictions and sentences.

A division bench comprising Justices A Y Kogje and Samir Dave affirmed the judgment of the special court, which had convicted members of the terror outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM) for orchestrating the coordinated bomb attacks that rocked Ahmedabad on July 26, 2008.

The serial blasts, carried out across 21 locations within a span of 70 minutes, claimed 56 lives and left more than 200 people injured. Several hospitals treating blast victims were also targeted, adding to the scale of the terror attack.

In February 2022, the special court had sentenced 38 convicts to death, describing the case as falling within the "rarest of rare" category. Eleven other convicts were awarded life imprisonment.

With Tuesday's verdict, the High Court upheld both the convictions and the quantum of punishment awarded by the trial court, confirming the death sentences for 38 convicts and life imprisonment for 11 others in one of India's deadliest terror cases.

- Ends